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Dolly Partons husband, Carl Dean, was last seen in public in December 2019 in Brentwood, Tennessee, a little more than five years before his death.
Parton announced via Instagram that her husband of nearly 59 years died on Monday, March 3. He was 82.
Carl Dean, husband of Dolly Parton, passed away March 3rd in Nashville at the age of 82. He will be laid to rest in a private ceremony with immediate family attending. He is survived by his siblings Sandra and Donnie, the post read.
Dean was last seen in December 2019 when he stepped out near the familys estate on Brentwood, Tennessee. The image of the then-77-year-old Dean, who was visiting the post office with an assistant, was the first time he had been photographed in public in four decades.
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Notably, when Parton began to rise to fame in the late 1960s, Dean stayed far in the background. He then remained out of the public eye for decades and wasnt photographed with his superstar wife. She did occasionally share throwback photos of her husband on social media.
Throughout their marriage, he stayed primarily at their large home outside of Nashville. He likes his freedom, Parton told PEOPLE in 1982. If I call him, thats fine, he aint expectin it. He doesnt like me home for long because it interferes with his tradin. So we never really have any hold on each other. And yet we have the ultimate hold.
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In a conversation with PEOPLE in 2021, the singer reflected on over five decades together. My husband and I, weve been together 56 years. Weve just been married 54 years this past May. But we still have our little times, like in the springtime when the first yellow daffodils come out. Even if theres still some snow around it, my husband always brings me a bouquet. And hell usually write me a little poem. Which to me, thats priceless.
